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A festive atmosphere prevailed at the IFP Women’s Day rally that was held at Dales Park sports ground on Sunday.

A large crowd of IFP supporters sang, danced and chanted war cries in anticipation of leader Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi’s arrival.

Buthelezi began his address by referring to August 9, 1956, when 20 000 women left their homes and marched to the Union Buildings in centre of Pretoria to protest against an unjust system.

He said people draw tremendous strength from what those women did, as they made people realise that no one was truly without a voice and no one was alone in the struggle against oppression and hardship.

However, said Buthelezi, today the message of that march is often misquoted. “You hear people say when you strike a woman you strike a rock. But the bedrock of strength that the song refers to is the strength of women united,” he said.

He said women have incomparable inner strength because they act on more than the instinct of self-preservation. “When a women does something exceptionally brave you can be sure that somebody else’s well-being is often involved.

“That is the courage and strength of an individual woman. But when women unite an explosive kind of power is birthed and takes things another level.

“That was the power we ignited when Inkatha yeNkululeko yeSizwe was born. From the very moment of its inception, Inkatha recognised the powerful role that women play in South African politics,” Buthelezi said.

He said, for 42 years the IFP Women’s Brigade had driven initiatives for development, upliftment and political activity.

The reason the IFP was celebrating Women’s Day on Sunday, and not on August 9, was due to a special sitting of Parliament to decide the fate of the head of state, Buthelezi said.

“Corruption has taken root in our government to the point that it is hard to find a multi-million rand tender that is not tainted with corruption.”

He said even the lowest levels of municipalities and governments were in disarray, with financial mismanagement and expenditure eating away at the resources of the state.

According to Buthelezi, a cry against the president has been stirring among South Africans for several years now. “It is no longer just the opposition in politics that decries the president’s immoral leadership.”

The IFP leader said marches will not remove the president.

“If the vote of no confidence is successful, the entire cabinet will be dissolved and South Africa will find itself at a major crossroads, these are certainly interesting times,” Buthelezi added.

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